Google Base: The final coffin nail for newspapers?
Word leaked out this week that Google is testing a program to resell classified advertising space, in what could be the latest threat to traditional newspaper publishers.
A screen shot of the new service was posted at the tech blog "Thread Watch." The page shows directions for self-publishing Google ads for party planning services, articles on current events, or a listing to sell your used car, among other examples.
Presumably the service would include help-wanted and service ads, which have been a major cash cow for newspaper publishers. But traditional ad revenues have been pinched by free Web services such as CraigsList, which has rolled out free listings in most metropolitan areas.
"We are testing a new way for content owners to submit their content to Google, which we hope will complement existing methods such as our web crawl and Google Sitemaps," Tom Oliveri, Google product marketing manager, said in a statement on the company’s official blog. "We think it's an exciting product, and we'll let you know when there's more news."
"If Google offers the service for free, the sole revenue stream will be derived from keyword advertising and it will likely take share from other players, compressing growth rates," said a research note by Banc of America Securities. Classified ads generated $17 billion in revenue for newspapers in 2005, with automobile ads representing about 30 percent of the volume. Job-recruitment ads make up 23 percent of newspaper classified ads, and so far, Internet sites have penetrated this category the most.
Internet classifieds ads will generate about $2 billion in 2005, with recruitment advertising accounting for half of that amount, Banc of America estimates. Every 1 percent share that Google Base captures from traditional newspapers would be the equivalent to $190 million, the report said.
New in paperback: The Home-Based Bookstore: Start Your Own Business Selling Used Books on Amazon, eBay or Your Own Web Site (by Steve Weber)
A screen shot of the new service was posted at the tech blog "Thread Watch." The page shows directions for self-publishing Google ads for party planning services, articles on current events, or a listing to sell your used car, among other examples.
Presumably the service would include help-wanted and service ads, which have been a major cash cow for newspaper publishers. But traditional ad revenues have been pinched by free Web services such as CraigsList, which has rolled out free listings in most metropolitan areas.
"We are testing a new way for content owners to submit their content to Google, which we hope will complement existing methods such as our web crawl and Google Sitemaps," Tom Oliveri, Google product marketing manager, said in a statement on the company’s official blog. "We think it's an exciting product, and we'll let you know when there's more news."
"If Google offers the service for free, the sole revenue stream will be derived from keyword advertising and it will likely take share from other players, compressing growth rates," said a research note by Banc of America Securities. Classified ads generated $17 billion in revenue for newspapers in 2005, with automobile ads representing about 30 percent of the volume. Job-recruitment ads make up 23 percent of newspaper classified ads, and so far, Internet sites have penetrated this category the most.
Internet classifieds ads will generate about $2 billion in 2005, with recruitment advertising accounting for half of that amount, Banc of America estimates. Every 1 percent share that Google Base captures from traditional newspapers would be the equivalent to $190 million, the report said.
New in paperback: The Home-Based Bookstore: Start Your Own Business Selling Used Books on Amazon, eBay or Your Own Web Site (by Steve Weber)
posted by Steve Weber at 10/27/2005
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